Organisational Structure

Mayor and Councillors

It is the job of the councillors, headed by the Mayor, to set the policy direction of the Council; and the purpose of council staff, headed by the General Manager, is to undertake the day-to-day operations. The Mayor is elected each year by the Councillors from amongst their number.

General Manager

The General Manager is responsible for the overall management of Council as an organisation and the delivery of services and facilities in line with community direction and Council resource capacity.

To assist the General Manager in the exercise of these functions, there are two Departments of Council - Corporate and Strategy and Operations. Each of these Departments is headed by a Deputy General Manager.

Deputy General Manager Corporate and Strategy

The Deputy General Manager Corporate and Strategy is responsible for providing internal services within Council and facilitating and assisting branches of Council to deliver services and facilities to the community to the best possible standards in the areas of youth, aged care, family day care, and community and cultural development. Services are also provided to the community in the form of urban and rural planning and processing building and land use applications in line with regulations. The department is also responsible for the enforcement of legislation such as the Companion Animals Act 1998 and the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997.

Some of the areas of service provided by the branches within Corporate and Strategy include:

Corporate Performance

Financial Services

Governance and Leadership

Organisational Performance

Information Services

Risk Management

Assets

Community Planning

Community Services

Public Health and Amenity

Customer

The Corporate and Strategy Section is also responsible for the management and operation of the Visitor Information Centre, library services throughout the Shire and developing awareness and visibility of the Southern Highlands as a tourist destination.

Deputy General Manager Operations

The Deputy General Manager Operations is responsible for the design, construction and maintenance of the many Shire assets, including local roads, shared pathways, water and sewer pipes, passive and active recreation areas and community buildings. Some of the areas in which services and facilities are provided include.